Directions:

From I-70 West of Denver, head south on Hwy 74 towards Evergreen. Turn west on Stagecoach Road and the Trailhead is a bit more than mile, on the right. Park here and cross Stagecoach Road to the Jenkins Peak Trailhead.

Hike Description:

The trails leading up to Jenkins Peak are a relatively new addition to Elk Meadows Park and a welcome one. The hike is very pleasant with a gentle but steady climb to a summit with fantastic views of Mt. Blue Sky and the surrounding foothills. It’s always nice when a new easy peak bagging opportunity in the Denver Foothills comes around, it doesn’t happen very often.

The hike starts from the Stagecoach Trailhead, cross the street to the Trailhead and head off on the Jenkins Peak Trail. After a short decent towards the pine forest you arrive at the start of the loop. The Catamount Trail is the most direct route to the summit, the Jenkins Peak Trail has a nice grove of aspen and cottonwoods, great for some fall color peeping. If you take the Catamount Trail, continue descending into the forest and cross the small creek. The trail then climbs steadily via nicely contoured switchbacks up to a flat sparse forest. This is a very pretty part of the trail when the morning light is filtering through the trees. After about a mile of hiking reach the junction with the Jenkins Trail.

The Jenkins Trail continues the gentle switchbacks up towards the summit. The last switchback provides nice views of the Mt. Blue Sky summit. As you come around the bend for the final push up to the peak, the north face of Elephant Butte comes into view. I think this is my favorite part of this hike; Elephant Butte is a stark landmark and this a rare glimpse at its north face. The trail continues up a ridge, the north slopes are forested, and the south slopes are bare so the views to the south are wide open. At the summit is a bench and a large summit cairn. The main vista is of the Mt. Blue Sky massif with Mt. Blue Sky, Mt. Spaulding, Epaulet Mountain, and Rosalie Peak are all on display.

On your way down, you can stay on the Jenkins Trail to complete a loop. The Jenkins Trail cuts through a large grove of aspen and cottonwood trees and crosses the creek. By mid-November the trees were bare but I assume this would be a great fall colors destination in mid to late October. After the creek, the trail climbs back up to the loop junction and the trailhead soon after.

The more trails the merrier for Denver’s foothills but this 3 mile peak bag is a truly valuable addition to the Jefferson County Open Space system. Rare views of local landmarks and one of the best views of Mt. Blue Sky in the area make this a must do hike for Denver and Front Range hikers. Enjoy!